Minnesota Farm Living

Connecting Consumers with Farmers


Top Blog Posts of 2015

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Top Blog Posts for 2015

2015 has been a great year for Minnesota Farm Living. And, even though I did the top 10 blog posts individually, I compiled the list into one blog post. So, starting off with #10: 

#10 What I Wish People Knew About Pig Farming

“It’s pleasurable to visualize the sunny 70-degree days where pigs roam pastures under trees and never hurt one another. You know, the whole Charlotte’s Web scenario. Who wouldn’t love a world like that? But we don’t live in Charlotte’s Web’s book, we live in reality . . . “

#9 Top 10 Reasons Farmers Are A Little Odd

“Farmers have binocular vision – How is it that farmers can see a piece of machinery in a field five miles away and know the model of tractor, what field it is in, who is driving and also knows they are eating the last half of a bag of Cheetos?  (okay, maybe a little exaggeration, but you get the point . . .)”

#8 This Is Why It’s Okay To Feed Your Family GMOs

“So why do we need GMOs? One reason – the GMO technology is better for the environment and is just one tool farmers can use to improve efficiencies. We use less pesticides on our farm and that’s good for the environment. There is less runoff (70% less), less water is needed, less soil erosion (90% less), less plant disease and less pesticide exposure to my husband. But it’s just not benefiting farmers, consumers can benefit as well.”

#7 Chipotle: There is NO Pork Shortage

“Let me be perfectly clear on this issue. This isn’t about the right or wrong way to raise pigs. The issue is the intentional marketing scheme by Chipotle to vilify the vast majority of America’s pig farmers because of the way they raise their pigs. This helps exemplify Chipotle’s brand of integrity.”

#6 10 Things I Wish The Food Babe Knew

“I wish you knew more about factory farms. I wish you knew that “factory farms” are really family farms. 96% of so called “factory farms” are family owned.  By asking your readers to boycott factory farms, you are asking them to boycott families who farm and care for animals every single day. Why do you feel it’s wrong for family farmers to use technology and improved efficiencies, which result in better care for their animals?”

#5 10 Things You May Not Know About GMOs

“GMOs = Sustainability. Using GMO technology allows farmers to use less pesticides. Less pesticides = good for people and the environment. Not only do farmers use less pesticides, but newer GMO varieties include a drought tolerant trait where plants require less water.  There is also the possibility of GMO plants using nitrogen already present in the soil as a nutrient. Presently, plants have a hard to time accessing and using the nitrogen already present in the soils. Biotechnology possibilities are endless . . .”

#4 Dear Chipotle: What Do You Have Against U.S. Pig Farmers

“Integrity means your actions match your words and I’m sorry Chipotle, but that’s just not the case with you anymore. Your actions seems to change depending on the situation and then the story changes to match the situation.”

#3 When Tragedy Strikes, We Come Together . . . It’s Who We Are

“And the “sun that will rise” is our farming community. When tragedies strike, farming communities step up to the plate and help. They are not asked, they just show up ready to get their hands dirty. 

It’s who we are. Period.”

#2 10 Truthful Things About Harvest Most Non-Ag People Don’t Know 

“The smells, sights and sounds of harvest. Nothing compares than smelling corn as it is harvested, watching the corn augered into the grain cart or truck, running through the corn dryer or hearing the sounds of corn dropping into the corn bin. Yes, it’s the simple things we cherish. And it mirrors life–it’s the simple things that really are the big things in life.”

#1 Top 5 Things Subway Customers Need To Know

“Your meat is safe. Today and on March 1, 2016. If you go into Subway today to buy a sandwich, the meat you are eating is antibiotic-free. If you go into Subway on January 1, 2016, your sandwich meat will be antibiotic-free. The end result is the same.” 

Top Blog Posts From The Farm

When Our Animals Get Sick and Die

“One of the hardest things about farming is when our animals are sick. We hate it. And the only thing worst than sick animals are dead animals. We just can’t get around the feeling that we have failed them.”

Boar Studs – Turning Semen Into Pigs

“In the vast majority of pig farms, breeding boars are no where to be found. So with that information, how are sows bred? The majority of sows in the U.S. are bred using a technique called Artificial Insemination, OR AI. AI is not new and was first used in swine in the 1930’s. Boar studs (boar farms) are used to collect boar semen, which is then used to breed sows.”

A Little Boy, A Grain Cart and Some Quarters

“My son-in-law sells roofs and had to drop off a sales bid to a potential customer. Mr. E stayed behind in the truck waiting for his dad. When my son-in-law returned to the truck he noticed a pile a change–quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies on his seat. Wondering what the money was for, he asked Mr. E about it . . .”

Why We Use Individual Gestation Stalls

“What is the best way to house sows? Is it individual gestation pens? Is it group housing? For most people, sow housing raises a lot of questions. Let me start with saying, 

“There is NO perfect sow housing. None. Nada.”

Dear Chipotle, What Do You Have Against U.S. Pig Farmers?

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The following is a guest blog post written by Lori Stevermer, Minnesota Pork Producer Council President.

Pigs
Pigs

I read your recent announcement on your new supplier of pork for your carnitas and I couldn’t help but ask myself what you have against U.S. pig farmers. Your article discusses how your new pork supplier, Karro, a company from the United Kingdom, follows European standards that allow for antibiotics to be administered when necessary to keep an animal healthy. Karro does not give pigs non-therapeutic doses of antibiotics for growth promotion. Your comments go on to state that as a result, some of the pork Chipotle purchases from the UK comes from animals that were treated with antibiotics under veterinary supervision.

That same practice is followed here in the United States by America’s pig farmers. In fact new rules are going into effect that will make it illegal to use antibiotics for growth promotion that are considered medically important. These antibiotics will need to have a veterinary prescription before they can be purchased.

I found the next statement on your website interesting. “But this does not mean that antibiotics are present in the meat. All animals treated with antibiotics (both in Europe and the U.S.) must undergo a withdrawal period before they are slaughtered, which means that meat from a pig treated with antibiotics will not contain antibiotic residue, just like meat from an animal that was never given antibiotics.” All these years you’ve been saying that your pork is better because it comes from farms that never fed antibiotics, but now that you have a supplier that can use antibiotics, you’re admitting there will be no residue and it’s the same as pork from animals never fed antibiotics. It would appear that you have changed your message to fit your situation.

I was also concerned when I read through the chart comparing “conventionally raised” pork to Chipotle U.S and Chipotle U.K. On the topic of using antibiotics used to treat illness it was listed as an industry standard for conventional pork, but it’s prohibited by Chipotle U.S and used only when necessary by Chipotle U.K. Please tell me what I’m supposed to do when my pig gets sick. Not give it medicine to make it better? Let it get sick and die? All your early discussion of humane treatment seems to be a bit hypocritical if I can’t treat a sick animal with medicine.

At the top of your website is the phrase “Food with Integrity”. Given the examples I listed above, it makes me wonder how Chipotle defines integrity. It makes me question who Chipotle uses as a source of industry information. I know many farmers who treat animals humanely and give them antibiotics only when they are sick and keep their pigs in the barns to protect them from freezing temperatures and scorching heat. Those farmers live right here in the U.S. Chipotle, have you taken the time to talk to them?

Integrity means your actions match your words and I’m sorry Chipotle, but that’s just not the case with you anymore. Your actions seems to change depending on the situation and then the story changes to match the situation. You say there’s not enough pork raised in the U.S. to meet your standards for “Responsibly Raised” meats. If you want your animals raised a particular way, there’s your choice to help differentiate your company. However, don’t insinuate that the farmers who use a different production practice aren’t treating their animals humanely. If you want to buy pork from another country that’s your choice. However, as a consumer I prefer to support restaurants and eating establishments that support and promote U.S. agriculture.

You see Chipotle, I like Food with Integrity too and you just don’t have it.

 

Chipotle: There Is NO Pork Shortage!

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It seems there is a pork shortage at Chipotle. At least according to Chipotle. One of Chipotle’s pork suppliers has violated their housing agreement for pigs. The company demands that it’s suppliers raise pigs in “humane conditions with access to the outdoors, rather than in cramped pens.” Because the supplier violated the pig housing agreement (by bringing pigs inside to prevent them from the harsh weather), Chipotle will not purchase their pork. This decision resulted in a pork shortage in over 1700 locations in the U.S. Here is a picture of a pig pen in our barn.  Do you think they look cramped? Does this look inhumane? And as you read on, you find out there is NO pork shortage. 

Pigs on Slats
Pigs in Pen (cramped pen per Chipotle)

In the past, Chipotle customers may have noticed signs stating when certain meats don’t meet the company’s “responsibly raised” standards, a substitution will take place. What is the substitution? Conventionally-raised animals. But this time there will be no substitution for the pork.

Now it’s no secret that Chipotle is no friend to America’s farmers. They repeatedly throw farmers under the bus. How? Because they believe they know better in how pigs should be raised. Let me just state – Housing animals outdoors does not equate to better pork. Better pork is genetics, nutrition, health care and management. Personally, we have experienced raising pigs outdoors. And during the winter we dealt with frozen waterers, frostbitten ears, broken legs (from slipping on ice and snow), and sick pigs from pneumonia. And this is the short list of difficulties. 

Why doesn’t Chipotle want pigs housed indoors? One reason I believe is our society’s view of farming. And it can be summed up in one word – nostalgia. Consumers either remember or have seen pictures of the good ole’ days. They also know most consumers are removed 3-4 generations from the farm. And Chipotle is capitalizing on that disconnect. Chipotle believes it’s customers think animals are better off living outdoors. When people think of animals living outdoors they envision gorgeous, sun shining 70-degree days with a warm breeze to the face, all while sitting under a shade tree. It just doesn’t get better than that, right? And I can’t disagree. Those days are wonderful. 

But, we have like five days a year like that. 

It’s not the reality. In Minnesota, our winters can be outright brutal and terrible. No animal or human should be outside during those nasty winder days and nights. So, can anyone tell me where the logic of how that is “better?” Is outdoor housing better for the pigs or just better for someone’s ideological views?

Another reason is many consumers believe that farm animals are raised in factory farms. Let me just say . . . .

Farmers raise pigs, not factories.

Let me be perfectly clear on this issue. This isn’t about the right or wrong way to raise pigs. The issue is the intentional marketing scheme by Chipotle to vilify the vast majority of America’s pig farmers because of the way they raise their pigs. This helps exemplify Chipotle’s brand of integrity. Chipotle wants consumers to believe that most pigs are raised in factory farms, which results in inhumane treatment. And because Chipotle is above that (the integrity part), they only buy pigs from farms who meet their ideology, which in reality does not always equate favorable treatment for pigs. This is precisely why the farmer who raised Chipotle’s pork could not meet their animal welfare standards. He knew what his “welfare standards” were and they didn’t match Chipotles. Does this make him a bad farmer? Absolute not. Does that mean his pork is not good? Absolutely not. What it means is the ideology does not match the reality.  

And that makes me sad. That’s why I am speaking up.

It’s all about marketing and making themselves look better by trying to show they are superior than their competition by using fear marketing. But it’s also about choice. That’s why I will never eat at Chipotle’s. I will eat at establishments that respect hard-working farmers. I will not get caught up in the “fluff” of marketing.

And while I am somewhat saddened to see that Chipotle is not serving pork right now, I know there are many other Mexican restaurants that would love our business. Or wait a few months and you can grill your own. And there is nothing better than a grilled pork chop!  And you want to know a secret? These pork chops came from animals that were housed indoors. And it is some of the best pork around. 

pork
Barn Raised Pork!

 

Farmers: Don’t let Netflix or Activist Groups Tell your Story

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Written by Adam Czech, Minnesota Corn Growers Association

If you spend any time browsing the documentary section on Netflix, it looks like “Food Inc.” and “King Corn” got married and had hundreds of anti-farming documentary offspring.

Films like “Food Fight,” “Farmageddon,” “Forks over Knives” and “Food Matters” fill up screen after screen of Netflix’s “Watch now” section. Millions of Netflix subscribers have instant access to these films. And for many, it’s the only way they’ll ever hear information about modern agriculture.

Unfortunately, the shots at modern farming aren’t limited to documentary films. Well-funded activist organizations like the Environmental Working Group (EWG) regularly blast agriculture, likening farmers to “drunks at a bar” and using their metro media contacts to blame agriculture for destroying our rivers and streams.

Even multi-billion dollar corporations are piling on. Chipotle, which was once owned by McDonald’s (a target of many food and farm-related documentaries), recently released an online marketing campaign disguised as a television series that portrays modern agriculture as one big evil corporation using GMOs to grow their bottom line and injecting the meat we eat with all kinds of who knows what.

Whether it’s a film, activist organization or mega-corporation, one thing is clear: People enjoy a good story.

“In the end, people connect to stories more than they connect to facts,” says Jen Haugen, a registered dietitian who grew up on a farm near Lakefield, Minnesota and currently lives in Austin.

And if farmers don’t tell their own story, someone else will. Hence, films like “King Corn,” activist organizations like EWG and anti-ag marketing campaigns from corporations like Chipotle.

Haugen frequently talks food and farming in the local media and at food and health-related events. She also has her own website. She’s not a grenade-thrower, meaning she doesn’t make outrageous claims simply to garner attention to sell a film or a burrito.

What she does provide is science-based information on buzzworthy food topics like GMOs and ideas for families to connect over farming and food. She also offers valuable insight into how individual farmers can better connect with consumers and tell their own story.

“One thing a farmer can do is to mine their lives of stories,” she said. “It can be hard to think about all a farmer does in a day, but digging up a few key stories that showcase why you chose to be a farmer, what is the most rewarding thing about farming, how you farm and why you continue to do it can go a long way to personalizing your story. I think it’s also important for farmers to document these stories – write them down and refer back to them often as talking points.”

Farmers telling their own story isn’t limited to the big screen or the pages of a newspaper. Everyday interactions present opportunities to tell farming’s story.

“Telling your story can happen in many different ways,” says Wanda Patsche, a family farmer in South Central Minnesota who also blogs at Minnesota Farm Living. “Talk with family members, neighbors, people you do business with, community service organizations such as Rotary or Kiwanis. Traveling also presents many opportunities — whether it’s talking to the person next to you on an airplane, people in a hotel  or campgrounds or restaurants. The person-to-person opportunities are endless.”

For many farmers, telling their own story is difficult. They’re farmers, not public relations specialists. But a basic understanding of what makes an interesting story can go a long way in helping push back against misinformation currently out there about farming.

For example, I recently spent 30 minutes on the phone with a farmer talking about ideas for stories about conservation. Only after we were done chatting did I learn that this farmer also practiced conservation drainage. To the farmer, conservation drainage was “just something he did.” The farmer didn’t think it was worth telling the general public about.

With less than 2 percent of the population making their living on the farm today, America’s disconnect from agriculture is bigger than ever. People want to know about where their food comes from and they want to know more about farming, but they have no idea where to turn.

They also want to know about things like conservation drainage. How is it making farming better? Why do farmers practice it? How does it help get food on their family’s table while preserving our rivers and streams? If farmers don’t answer these questions, consumers will turn to activist groups like EWG for answers, or head to Netflix to browse the latest films about “big ag.”

You can find Matt Braun on Twitter (@FastGrassGuy) and other social media outlets regularly sharing information about what’s happening near where he grew up on a family farm near the Farmington/Hampton, Minnesota area and where he lives today near Dennison. He agrees that it’s tough for a busy farmer to think about the public relations aspect of farming, but says it needs to happen.

“If the farmer is busy, that is alright, but he or she needs to do it whenever they can,” Braun said. “The grocery store, the movie theater, online…wherever. Starting a conversation goes a long way with the non-farming public.”

Yes, there is a lot of noise to cut through in order to get the true story out there about farming. It’s easy for me to sit behind a keyboard and tell farmers that they need to tell their own story. Like most things in life, the issue is a bit more complicated than that. But we have to start somewhere.

If you still don’t think consumers are yearning for more information from farmers, then check out this video of Jimmy Kimmel asking people who are gluten free if they know what gluten actually is (spoiler alert: they don’t).

Imagine a world where the people being interviewed got their information about food and farming from actual farmers, not movies on Netflix, EWGs or burrito conglomerates?

“Consumers want to know more about where their food comes from,” Patsche said. “Unfortunately, some of the information about agriculture on the Internet is just plain wrong. And it’s the misinformation about agriculture that we as farmers need to correct. If we don’t correct the misinformation about what we do, who will?”

Visit Jen Haugen’s website: http://www.jenhaugen.com/
Read Wanda Patsche’s blog: http://www.mnfarmliving.com/
Follow Matt Braun on Twitter: https://twitter.com/FastGrassGuy

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